


She's a Genius

by someoneonlyweknow



Series: Will They, Won't They [2]
Category: Brittana - Fandom, Glee
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:01:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24971977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/someoneonlyweknow/pseuds/someoneonlyweknow
Summary: She sat there frozen, replaying the words of the one guy she hated the most; she didn't exactly hate him, he just definitely wasn’t her favorite person. “It’s about Brittany,” he said over the phone with a stoic yet soft demeanor, “she’s been acting really weird.” She wanted to hang up, this isn’t her problem anymore; she knows that a part of her will always love the blonde, but she chose him and whatever's going on was his problem. But she stayed on the phone.
Relationships: Sam Evans/Brittany S. Pierce, Santana Lopez/Brittany S. Pierce
Series: Will They, Won't They [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1807483
Kudos: 17





	She's a Genius

**Author's Note:**

> Based off of 4x22 (All or Nothing), but focusing on Brittana.

She sat there frozen, replaying the words of the one guy she hated the most; she didn't exactly hate him, he just definitely wasn’t her favorite person. Santana went back to Lima and fought for her, but Brittany chose him and it still hurts to say the least. Brittany. Ugh. No matter how many hook-ups she had in college or dates with off-Broadway choreographers in New York, she couldn’t get the girl out of her head. She thought about the last time she saw her at the wedding not wedding, wondered what her favorite color was at the moment, or all the genius ideas she had missed while being away. Before she allowed herself to get too sad, she was reminded of Sam’s words; she could still easily hear the urgency and fear in his trembling voice. “It’s about Brittany,” he said over the phone with a stoic yet soft demeanor, “she’s been acting really weird.” She wanted to hang up, this isn’t her problem anymore; she knows that a part of her will always love the blonde, but she chose him and whatever's going on was his problem. But she stayed on the phone. While he begged for her help, she begged back; she’s worked so hard to get over her, and going back would ruin all her progress as soon as she looked at those blue eyes. He really did sound desperate though, and continued to beg her to come back to help him; but, they both knew if she was coming back it was for the sole purpose of making sure Brittany was safe. So that’s why she cancelled her drink plans, packed her bags, and made her way to Lima, Ohio before she could change her mind; Santana had a soft spot for Brittany, and she knew if she tried ignoring this, she wouldn’t get any sleep until she fixed the problem. She spent the entire trip thinking of her; they weren’t as close as before and they haven’t talked since that day after the wedding, even though they promised to keep in touch this time. Even if she went back and spoke to her, what could she possibly say or do that would make Brittany open up to her instead of Sam, her boyfriend. Wait, ex-boyfriend? She was so quick with a comeback during their conversation that she didn’t even register what he said. They broke up. Before she could even think of a plan or ask herself anymore questions, she made it; she wanted to say she was home, but it felt too weird and untrue. She called her mom before the trip and again once she got there, so that she wasn’t too surprised and so that she could pick her up; she didn’t really explain the details just that she had to go back and check on Brittany, her mom look at her with worried eyes thinking of the heartbreak and endless tears she endured over the half year since their break-up. Once she got to her childhood house, she hurriedly threw her bags across the room and ran back to the car making a too familiar drive to a too familiar house.

She parked her car, and looked up towards the house with instant regret; I should’ve called first or texted, I can’t just show up and hope everything’s back to normal. She sighed loudly and leaned back into her seat. She didn’t get out for awhile, just turned the car half off where the radio was still on so she could debate what to do; she was curious as to what sparked Brittany’s change in character and made her drop out of Regionals, and she had no idea what Sam was talking about when he said that she toured MIT. Part of her felt bad for not keeping up with the blonde after the wedding like she had promised, but communication works both ways and the blonde hadn’t tried either; she was about to give up and text Sam sorry for not following through, until she turned her attention towards the radio. An old Taylor Swift song was playing. Not the one she sang to Brittany before the break-up, but she heard enough of the singer’s voice to turn the car off while memories flooded into her brain; anything from memories of them first becoming friends and starting the Unholy Trinity to date nights when she was finally out holding Brittany’s hand not under napkins or under tables. She put her forehead on the steering wheel, took some deep and calming breaths, and got out. She closed the door behind her, locked the car, and pulled her phone out. With a last, final hesitation she called the blonde while looking up towards her window; a big part of her hoped she wouldn’t answer, but there was that little part, buried deep in her heart, that missed her voice. 

“Santana?” the blonde said in a confused tone. She let out a small laugh as she heard meows from the other line as if even Brittany’s cats were shocked with the name.

“Uhmm hi,” was all she could manage to say; after a few moments of silence she continued with her previous thought, “do you have a minute to talk?”

She could hear Brittany’s brain thinking with every second she hesitated to reply, “yeah of course i’m just at home, bored, what’s up?”

Santana could see the silhouette of the lanky blonde and a giant cat sitting at the windowsill; with a shaky sigh, “I meant, like in person can we talk?” The blonde didn’t reply just looked out the window she was sitting by; although it was dark, she could still see the surprised look on her ex’s face. She never got a response, just heard a noise from her phone signaling that the call had ended; looking back at the window, she noticed the blonde was gone. Before she could wonder if she had done something wrong, she heard the front door open. With the smallest of waves, Brittany opened the door a little bigger signaling for her to come inside; Santana’s feet felt glued to the cement underneath her, but the blonde was patient. After closing her eyes and counting to ten, she finally willed her feet to move; she walked slowly until she was face-to-face with the girl she once loved. Who was she kidding, girl she still loves. Ugh. She knew that if she came back and looked at those blue eyes, everything she worked so hard to forget would come back in an instant. They looked at each other for what seemed like hours, and while Santana wanted to move the baby hairs out of Brittany’s face or give her a hug, she forced her arms to stay crossed; after a few more looks, she finally stepped inside. She looked around, noticing minor changes in the décor but nothing major; she took a deep breath in smelling the usual vanilla scent, and even looking at the pictures of the family on the wall. It made her realize that while she missed Brittany, she also missed her whole family; they were quirky, but always accepting of Santana and letting her stay over all the time even on school nights. Her moment of reminiscing was cut short as she heard a small, awkward cough coming from the girl next to her; she redirected her attention to Brittany and could see so many emotions in her eyes and face. A look of confusion, sadness, and even happiness could be seen; she finally reached over and gave the girl a hug. While the blonde hesitated, they both relaxed into each other’s arms; the hug felt like it lasted forever, mending the little pieces of a broken heart that they caused each other. They were broken apart by a loud meow underneath them, she gave the cat an ugly look earning a chuckle from the blonde next to her.

“What are you doing here, Santana?” Brittany softly said as she rubbed the Latina’s shoulders like she use to do after a long day of school, Cheerio’s, and Glee.

Santana couldn’t think straight, so she stepped back and leaned on the wall; although she saw the hurt flash in her eyes she responded, “Sam called.” The blonde looked down staring at her socks looking too embarrassed to speak so she continued, “He told me you’ve been acting strange since your visit to MIT, so two questions: why did you go to MIT and why did you drop out of Regionals?”

Instead of answering any questions the blonde jumped in joy, “I promise to answer your questions, but only if you star on Fondue for Two! My viewers have been asking for you!” Before she could respond, she was pulled by the hand towards the blonde's room. It was crazy to Santana how everything looked the same, yet everything felt so different. She was so confused that she didn’t realize that Brittany had already started speaking into the video camera; while she answered a question about New York and her two roommates, she remembered what she was supposed to be doing and turned the camera off. Brittany snapped, causing Santana to really look at the girl in front of her.

“Brittany, stop it. Seriously what the hell is going on with you? You’re acting liking a completely different person, and it’s making me sad.” 

“Well get over it, sadness is stupid,” Santana looked at the blonde in front of her, truly wondering what could make her act this way. Although Brittany was deflecting and trying to ignore the problem, Santana could still see the pain and turmoil in her face; she could see the blonde was hurting and that was causing her to be defensive, maybe she learned that from Santana since she was a pro at that herself. She took a small breath, carefully putting her next words together in her brain in a way that would hopefully cause the blonde to tell her what’s really going on.

“Britt, I still care about you as a person and a friend,” that last word stung and felt bitter in her mouth, but she kept going. “God, this just isn’t you,” she could see with every right word she said, Brittany’s defenses were slowly coming down. With a small smile, Brittany opened up; she told Santana about her SAT scores, her trip to MIT, the weird numbers she was seeing, and her early acceptance. Santana gave the girl a lop sided smile, she’s always believed that she was a genius but now she was happy that everyone else was able to see that too. But she was still confused as to why she was so upset. “Wait, are you sad because they want you to leave right away?” the blonde slowly nodded her head yes. “Then don’t go? You’re a genius, so you can graduate with your class and then any school would be lucky to have you?” It sounded like an easy solution to Santana, but the blonde didn't see it the same.

“I have to take the offer now while it’s still here, what if they got to know the real me and changed their mind because they know I’m stupid?” before Brittany could say anything else, Santana got up and gave her a long hug just resting her chin on her shoulder. 

“You’re a genius, Britt. I’ve always known that, and now everyone else will know that too,” she said with her voice shaking trying to suppress any sobs or tears trying to leave. “I can’t tell you what to do, but whatever it is, I know you’re going to make the right choice,” Santana said with small tears falling onto the blonde’s shoulder. They were both crying now, still in each other’s arms. Brittany thanked her for being there, and laughed as she recounted her last day at Glee club. Santana laughed too, she would’ve loved to see the faces of everyone as Brittany walked out. But, it was a short-lived laugh; “You should call Mr. Schue and tell him what’s going on; they’re going to need you and your awesome dancing and beautiful singing if they’re going to win,” both smiling and wiping away any excess tears. “Oh God, especially if you guys do a song like Gangam Style again,” as she faked a gagging noise earning a loud laugh from the blonde; Brittany nodded her head and called her Glee teacher, all while holding Santana’s hand the entire time.

After an hour of laughing and crying and catching up, Santana knew it was time for her to go; she tried to get up to smooth out her dress, but was pulled back down by the blonde. “Please don’t go. I finally got you back,” Brittany looked at her with sad and tired eyes. She really wanted to resist, but she’s never had it in her heart to say no; so she rolled her eyes instead, and the blonde knew she won and gave her comfy clothes to change into. They laid in bed like so many times before, but nothing was the same; she tried her best to be strong, but being around Brittany always made her vulnerable. The blonde heard Santana quietly crying, and held her tighter than before; almost as tight as the night Santana’s abuela disowned her. She was comfortable and felt the most “home” that she’s felt ever since first leaving Lima after graduation; with that, she fell asleep. Santana has never been a morning person, except for that day; she woke up super early and felt the blonde’s arms still around her, she wanted to stay and fall back asleep and not think about what this meant. But she carefully removed herself from the blonde without waking her, gathered her clothes and with one last look and smile, left.

///

Brittany texted her hours later asking where she went, and Santana responded with a lame excuse of promising her mom breakfast but also promising the blonde to see her before her performance. And that’s how she ended up in the show circle before the New Directions’ performance, wondering if people could see how much she regretted being there. Everything was fine, until she heard Brittany clear her voice asking for a moment to apologize and explain her even weirder than normal behavior; Santana was proud of her. She could see how much she’s matured, but still was her true self who could make anyone laugh without trying; and then she redirected her speech to Sam. And it took everything in Santana to not break down, because as much as she still loved her, the blonde made sure to let everyone know that she moved on and was in love with Sam. Mr. Schue could see her tears escaping from his periphery and he squeezed her a little tighter, she looked at Mercedes and Kurt who looked at her sadly, and even Sugar just stared at her and cried. She was too preoccupied feeling hurt and embarrassed that she didn’t even realize the blonde was approaching her; they hugged, but before Brittany could say anything, Santana cut her off. Not in a mean way, but more of in a pleading way. The blonde understood and continued their hug for another second until she returned back to her spot. Once the New Directions went backstage to prepare for their performance, Santana stopped Mercedes before heading to their seats; she took a shaky breath, not even hiding her tears anymore. “Please tell me that I’m sabotaging myself of happiness, and tell me to move on because she already did,” Santana pleaded; maybe if someone else who had just saw the same thing told her to move on, she would. But for once, Mercedes stayed quiet; only offering a strong hug, and held her hand back to their seats in the audience. 

Their performance was great, definitely better than Sectionals; she missed performing, singing at the diner could be fun, but never as exhilarating as this. As she said her goodbye’s to her friends, congratulated the winners, and a see you later to her roommate, she couldn’t help but realize she couldn’t find her favorite blonde. Maybe God was giving her a chance to escape; go to New York with no regrets and no more looking back. As much as she told herself to walk to the parking lot, to her car, and back to New York; her feet told her differently. She looked in the choir room first where she found Blaine, Tina, and Sam laughing and taking selfies with the trophy but no Brittany; she rolled her eyes and still couldn’t believe she picked him. Although they had hurt each other in the past, she knew that she could treat her way better. She made her way backstage and looked onto the stage, Brittany was there sitting on the steps with sparklers still going off behind her. How is that not a fire hazard, she thought to herself. She admired her for a second; Brittany was the best dancer she knew, and while she’s always known that she was a genius, she can’t imagine Brittany just typing numbers into a calculator and not dancing. But that was her choice, and she promised to support her no matter what; so she slowly made her way onto the stage. She had so much she wanted to say to her, but instead she gave Brittany a small smile and extended out her arm; the blonde took it and pulled herself up, walking off the stage moving synchronously with their other arm around each other for support. 

Brittany asked for a car ride home, with Santana obviously saying yes; it was quiet with the only noise coming from the radio, and Santana was secretly hoping another Taylor Swift song didn’t start playing while Brittany was resting her head on the window. Santana looked at her and could see how tired she was from the last week of fear and uncertainty and emotions. They made it to Brittany’s house, but neither of them moved; they didn’t know when they would see each other again, and neither were prepared for that. “Good job tonight, you guys did great, and you were the best one out there,” Santana said without taking her eyes off the steering wheel in front of her. “I’ll see you soon-ish I hope,” she let out a fake laugh and continued, “maybe this time we’ll actually keep in touch.” She was playing with the steering wheel in front of her hoping the blonde would say a quick goodbye and leave; she thought her prayers were answered when she heard the seatbelt unbuckling, but didn’t hear the car door open and close. She looked to her right, and saw Brittany with tears in her eyes looking directly at her.

“You never let me finish what I was saying,” with the confusion apparent on Santana’s face she continued, “in the show circle. You told me I didn’t have to say anything, but I have a lot to say.” Santana tried to interject, but the blonde just grabbed her hands instead and took one last deep breath. “I told you this at the end of our Junior year, and while we’ve changed so much since then, I know something that hasn’t,” she choked back some sobs and quickly wiped away her tears trying to finish her sentence with as much courage as she could muster. “I love you, Santana. I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone else in this world. And because of that, I think anything’s possible,” Brittany finished with a soft smile and tears falling onto her performance dress, still holding Santana’s hands while rubbing little circles with her thumb. Santana remembers the words and that moment so vividly; Brittany told her that same thing at their lockers long ago, it meant so much to her to hear her say that back then. Whenever she felt down and was having a bad day, she remembered what Brittany said and somehow it gave her the energy to keep going. She shook her head and took back her hands.

“I didn’t let you finish talking, because I was scared and embarrassed,” Santana said quietly, hoping the blonde didn’t hear. “I’ve known you longer, and even though we’re not together anymore, we’ve been best friends since the day we met. I was scared that if you said something to me there, it wouldn’t come close to what you said to Sam. The boy you’ve only been dating for like what half a year?” She knew this would happen; if she started talking she didn’t know if she could stop, and she can’t really control what comes out of her mouth when she’s angry. “I do everything for you. I broke up with you, because you felt left behind. I came back and fought for you. I left for New York, because you told me to leave. But, you’re the one that keeps hurting me. And in the end, I feel like whatever I do, it’s still not good enough for you,” Santana said bitterly with Brittany crying in her passenger seat. They didn’t speak for awhile, letting the words just spoken settle in the air; they looked out their windows, scared that if they looked at each other it would scare the other away. “Maybe you should go, Britt. You have to pack and be at MIT on Monday,” Santana said, slowly letting go of what was left of their friendship. Brittany let out a sigh and reached for the door handle, but she swiftly turned looking at Santana and waited until brown eyes met hers. 

“I love you, Santana and I don’t know how many times I have to say it for you to really understand. I loved you when we first met, when we were just best friends, when I was with Artie, when you broke up with me, and even now.” Santana looked at the blonde with tears falling, and her heart in pain. “I don’t know what’s going to happen while I’m at MIT, or when I’ll see you again, but I know that I’m still going to be loving you. I’m always going to love you.” Brittany finished that sentence and threw herself across the middle arm rest forcing them in a hug. While Santana didn’t hug back right away, Brittany didn’t stop until she gave in; their hug saying everything they couldn’t. They stayed like that until their tears came close to a stop; they sat back in their seats, looking at each other’s eyes trying to find the right words to say. Brittany leaned over again, but this time giving Santana a kiss on her tear stricken cheek. “I love you, Santana,” she said quietly; with one last look at the Latina, she opened the door and walked towards her front door. Santana’s eyes never left Brittany, so she saw Brittany turn around one last time before going inside. Neither of them knowing when they would see each other again, but both having a bit more hope than before.


End file.
